John Gibson: Here's the latest on the club scene

Unmistakable. The smell of paint. The Royal Scots Club in Abercromby Place has had a right good lick of it.

Chairman of the trustees Brian Adair, general manager Adrian Hayes at his side, was escorting me on a tour of the premises established in 1922. The club's patron Princess Anne graced the re-launch in late January but the aroma of the paint job lingers.

"We spruced up the club, brought some of it into the 21st century so to speak, for Princess Anne and we spruced it up for you, John," said Mr Adair.

Proud to be showing me round. The chairman and the manager were at pains to let me see what management and members have got for their money in the three-year long 1.5 million makeover.

A lift that serves six floors is the club's first. It has become the Cape Canaveral of Abercromby Place. Various conference rooms have been created, some equipped with today's technology, worlds away from the trenches.

All of it embraced by the 2000 members, paying 200 or 95 for membership. Dodgy characters are stopped at the guard room.

An Open Day on September 25 brings the chance of a nosey and a close-up of the floral adornments. Red, white and blue. Naturally.

Sweet memory

You won't wish to know this, particularly. But I'm telling you any way. On this day in '85 I dined in the Hong Kong Hilton Eagle's Nest. The personalised menu is among my souvenirs. I wonder if my colleague at that table, the late Brian Hanrahan of the BBC, kept his. Good times that won't ever come back.

Here's what the Hilton served us: Shark's fin with fresh crabmeat, fried garoupa fillets with sweet and sour sauce, toffee apple fritters.